Scyther’s 1997 Amada Sticker and Why It Still Resonates

Scyther No.326: An Amada Card Sticker From 1997

A Card Sticker in the Bikkuri Man Tradition

This is a paper rectangular card sticker produced by Amada, a Japanese toy and collectibles manufacturer, in 1997. It features Scyther — known in Japan as Sutoraiku — alongside a stats panel that displays LV.39 and a row of numerical icons, making it something more considered than a simple decorative sticker. This format, widely called a card sticker in Japan, traces its roots to the mid-1980s, when Lotte’s Bikkuri Man stickers established a template that defined a generation of children’s collecting: character artwork combined with readable game-adjacent information, small enough to trade, detailed enough to study. Amada was one of the central manufacturers who carried that tradition into the 1990s, producing card stickers for Dragon Ball, Sailor Moon, and eventually Pokemon. The “No.326” printed here is Amada’s own internal series number, distinct from Scyther’s official Pokedex entry of No.123. A line of text on the sticker hints that the broader series included multiple level tiers or stat variants of the same character, though the complete lineup of that series hasn’t been definitively documented.

Scyther: The Praying Mantis Pokemon of the First Generation

Scyther is one of the original 151 Pokemon introduced in Pokemon Red and Green, the Game Boy titles released in Japan on February 27, 1996. A Bug and Flying type modeled on a praying mantis, it was defined in-game by high Speed and Attack, and could only be encountered in the Safari Zone — at a notably low rate that made it stick in the memory of first-generation players. Its design is distinctive: blade-like forearms, a compact insectoid frame, and a yellow-green coloring that made it immediately recognizable on the small Game Boy screen. When the second generation arrived with Pokemon Gold and Silver, Scyther gained an evolution in Scizor, which renewed interest in the character and secured its place as a fan favorite across multiple generations of the franchise.

1997, Amada, and the Height of Japan’s Pokemon Boom

The timing of this sticker matters. The Pokemon anime launched on TV Tokyo on April 1, 1997, and the effect on Japan’s licensed merchandise market was immediate. Toy makers, stationery brands, and candy companies moved quickly to secure Pokemon licenses, and Amada was among the first wave to bring Pokemon card stickers to market. These were sold in small quantities through candy shops, stationery stores, and toy retailers — inexpensive, everyday objects at the epicenter of a cultural phenomenon. All text on this sticker is in Japanese, consistent with a product made for the domestic market and not distributed internationally. That origin matters to collectors who focus specifically on vintage Japanese Pokemon merchandise, a category distinct from the English-language Topps cards and other Western releases. Amada’s name carries recognition among that collector community, associated with the card sticker, medal, and prism sticker formats that defined the first years of Pokemon merchandise in Japan. Paper stickers from this period are also inherently fragile — prone to yellowing, creasing, and surface damage over nearly three decades — which is simply part of what makes surviving examples from 1997 worth understanding in context.